the last of Bastian

so I have had some real fun with the camera, I'm glad Bastian has been so amicable about it all..

(Proud of the above photo- it took a while to get him to hold the Giraffe, I can't say that a 11 wk old baby is THAT interested in toys.)

I'm glad I got some proper shots of Bastian (Christmas presents anyone?) before he was too BIG although it is sad I couldn't get him at sleepy newborn stage because you can do alot more with sleepy newborns.

Its AMAZING to watch him grow so fast.

He will soon be a little boy and not baby anymore :( lets hope he just skips the terrible twos!

UNTIL next time :)

Bastian #2

who knew iphoto had a simple editing program?

I didn't! haha

Bastian #1

So I finally got my hands on an SLR (thanks Simone) it might be a nikon but it'll do ;)

(I prefer Pentax or Canon.. I'm actually lobbying Kyle to let me get a Canon EOS 5D MARk ii but considering the price it might be a while..)

Maybe just a 5D would be nice?.. maybe anything?.. haha

These have not been photoshopped ( I don't have photoshop either ) :(

iso 100 - I like using a slow iso for close ups to help cut out extra information, plus its fun to practice with movement.

When I use my pentax I love love using the slower films, the black and white can really make the movement seem surreal.

the above photo has a slow shutter speed to take advantage of the natural light in the room.. I'm quite happy with this one. iso 400

then I went the other way & tried a darker feel to match the couch..

iso 800 for the wriggly boy.

more to come when little boy is happy again ;)

p.s:

it has been over over 12 months since my Pentax was last used so a little slack would be nice if I put in the aperture/shutter speed or ISO in the wrong way around.

Bastian says hello Dad

Fragile

The Man at the airport thought we might need this for the trip..

Bastian has been such a good boy while we have been in Tas.


- he is a real little man now.

Family Photobooth

enough said.

LAST NIGHt:

During the week I treated myself to a new cook book.

Last night I graced the family with:

Potato, Leek & Carrot soup.

Crispy Duck with Vegetable Salad & mashed potato

and Rhubarb dumplings.

I LOVE my new Donna Hay cook book, worth its weight in gold -- the recipes are even set out seasonally so that

a) you can use in season produce so its cheaper

b) yummy warm my tummy meals for winter

(I have a link to the Donna Hay website in the side bar, you can get free recipes from her website.)

Buddah Belly

BAStian KEEps :

growing & growing & growing

8 wks old today.

Bastians favourite game is heads & shoulders, knees & toes.

He LOVE love LOVES the shower and letting the water run over his face.

He still likes to sleep (thankfully)

He likes to guzzle with a loud gulp when he EATs and as a result of eating so much he now has a buddah belly...

I think I should rub his belly for good luck in this photo.

We love you Bubba Bass xx

Cocoa Pops

Over the last few months (since our big move) our family has been down a member/ a long long long time before Bastian there was Cocoa (You may remember her from this post.)

-- finally in a couple of weeks we will be a BIG FAT even bigger even happier family again.

I have kept Cocoas puppy picture beside our bed all this time because she is VERY very very very very missed.

In two weeks she is FINALLY coming.

We hope you have enjoyed your holiday with Nan Cocoa Pops, can't wait to see you :)

Today

There is a slight sense of satisfaction that comes with having the mole on my back removed -- it has utterly disgusted me for a while. Whilst pregnant the raging hormones encouraged it to raise its little brown self & hence; two quick jabs with some local anesthetic and a scalpel cut later- gone. Off to pathology (just in case) and never to be seen again.

Goodbye Mole

8 to 5

Dr Weissbluth your my sleep man, you've got my back.

(This is what I got from the book & what happened as a result)

Up until 6 weeks don't expect enough maturity for your baby to sleep through the night.. just try REALLY hard not to let them get over tired.

TICK

6 weeks you will notice your child wanting to sleep earlier in the evening, say bed time goes from 10pm to around 8.

TICK (exactly 6 weeks Bastian did this)

Now you can try sleep training.. YAY!

Have a night time ritual, a wind down time.

Bastian has boobie time.

bath time

soothing time 10 - 15 min (low lights, and a nibble)

- I think I might add book time here too

TICK

Then we put him down, turn the lights off and leave the room.

This is the extinction or 'let cry' method because Dr Weissbluth says the most important thing at bed time is consistency and I'm terrible when it comes to being consistent with controlled crying and he's too BIG for me to rock to sleep.

So extinction seemed the best option.

He probably whinges for 10 minutes and then lays there until he falls asleep. (aka puts himself to sleep, OH yeah go Bastian)

Weissbluth says: Hes crying because he loves me and wants to spend more awake time with me, just like if he was crying because he wanted to cross the road on his own, I know better. AND so will not pick him up!.. this was really hard the first couple of nights.

although BONUS because if I were to rock him it would take close to 2 hours (apparently this can stimulate him to try to stay awake.. well who would've thought)

Weissbluth also says don't be under the impression that keeping him up longer will make him sleep longer. Sleep begets sleep. Tired begets over-tired/wired.

(Yeah, tried to keep him up before I got the book & you don't want to know what happened)

Anyway after the first two days of using this method Bastian would sleep 6 pm to 12 am then 12.30 to 5 am then 5.30 am to 8 am. Which is a whole lot better than getting up every 4 hours.

Now for me, thats pretty good .. but THEN.

Last night after 5 days of using this method Sebastian cut out his 12 am feed himself.

YES thats right he slept from 8 pm to 5 am then 5.30 am to 8 am

TICK TICK TICK

DR WEISSBLUTH YOUR MY HERO!

(A massive thanks to Kristen who suggested this book for me to read)

p.s: the book caters for children from birth till.. (unsure) I'm only half way through because Bastian isn't old enough to really bother reading anymore.

As he gets older I shall read the appropriate chapter and see what to do next!